The China Mail - Trump-linked resort plan ignites Albanian discontent

The planned seaside resort in the coastal area of Zvernec, linked to Trump's daughter, Ivanka, and her husband, Jared Kushner, has triggered protests in several cities both inside the country and abroad.

But beyond the protest signs directly targeting the project, estimated to cost 4 billion euros ($4.6 billion), the chant of "Albania is not for sale" has accompanied placards criticising graft in the country.

"Discontent that had built up over the years has exploded," Skender Minxhozi, editor-in-chief of local outlet Java News, told AFP.

- 'The spark' -

Increasing frustration with a scandal-plagued political class, with ongoing corruption probes targeting current and former administrations, has been worsened by concerns over the "soaring cost of living", Minxhozi said.

"And the feeling that prospects for the future are shrinking like a withering skin."

Albania has been in a demographic crisis for decades, as people emigrate abroad in search of better work prospects.

Since 2015, the country's population has shrunk by half a million, according to official statistics.

This large diaspora has also rallied around the world, drawing global attention to the protesters' anger.

"Many of those demonstrating fled from precisely the same issues now being denounced in the public square," Minxhozi said.

"Zvernec was only the spark."

- EU, environmental concerns -

Unrest first broke out during a small protest in late May near the reserve after workers installed barbed wire to cordon off the area -- with videos of violent confrontations spreading quickly online, along with images of bulldozers on the beach.

As protests spread to the capital Tirana, the barbed wire and construction vehicles disappeared, but the demonstrators' demands have crystallised.

Alongside calling for the cancellation of the Zvernec project, protesters also want the scrapping of laws that have allowed the government to fast-track projects -- such as Kushner's other development on nearby Sazan Island.

Besjana Guri, the founder of environmental NGO Lumi, said demonstrators were also calling for the suspension of an amendment that allowed "massive construction" inside nature reserves such as Zvernec.

These laws have already cleared the way for the recently built Vlora airport, just five kilometres (three miles) from a critical migratory bird habitat and right next to the proposed resort project.

Concerns over the project's environmental impact have already triggered warnings from Brussels that it could slow Albania's path to the European Union -- one of Rama's major policy drives.

"We have already expressed our concerns to the Minister of the Environment regarding possible shortcomings in this project," a European Commission spokesperson told AFP.

"The minister has committed to having construction work suspended and to ensuring that a full environmental impact assessment is carried out," they said.

The EC also called for scrapping the laws that paved the way for development.

"Albania should refrain from any action that could jeopardise the fulfilment of the closing benchmarks, and we expect the Albanian authorities to act without delay."

The country's anti-corruption prosecutor has also confirmed it is investigating funds used to purchase the land in Zvernec.

- Flamingos, mini-skirts and fake news -

But behind the genuine protester concerns, a wave of fake news has also followed.

Some posts falsely claim that Albania is handing land to Israel, while others allege that Greece orchestrated the protests to seize the Trump family's investments.

Rama has responded by seizing on the misinformation, accusing protesters of being manipulated by foreign interests and dismissing their demands.

Speaking to Politico on the sidelines of a European summit on Friday, the prime minister said nobody would be interested in the development "if it was not Jared".

He has also increasingly mocked the protests, recently posting an AI-generated video in which he is dressed in a faux-leather skirt and a mesh top, mimicking an influencer counting demonstrators.

At a pro-government rally, he also wore a T-shirt emblazoned with the symbol of the protest movement -- a pink flamingo, an animal that nests near the proposed hotel development.

E.Lau--ThChM